Temper, Temper
by SheepInDisguise
Summary: Even the princess has her limits, and when Syaoran tests them, there's hell to pay.


In the many, many years she had known Syaoran, she had only found three things that she disliked about him.

First, his _bed_, which was too hard and lumpy for any living human to possibly sleep comfortably in. Sakura kept telling him that he was going to have severe back issues sometime in the future, but he would only laugh and blame her fickleness on her royal blood.

Then there was his ability to get lost in any sort of reading material and completely forget the world around him. Sakura didn't mind this most of the time, and honestly, it _was_ impressive to watch him maneuver his way through any setting without even looking up, but she hardly got to see him anymore. Would it be so hard for him to put down his book for a few hours and talk to her while he was home?

And finally, the big one- the one that drove Sakura absolutely mad: his insistence upon calling her 'hime'. Syaoran and Sakura had been friends for most of their lives, and there was no reason for him to be so formal. She knew he tried ("Hi-Sakura, sorry), but after scolding him and telling him time and time again for- what, _ten years?_\- to call her by her name, she couldn't help but be frustrated with him.

Now, Sakura tried to be a tolerant girl. She could put up with Fai and Kurogane arguing loud enough to wake up the entire kingdom at three in the morning. She didn't complain when her brother handed her a three-inch stack of reports and told her to be done by noon. She didn't even lose her temper that time Mokona lost one of her feathers.

But she was _not happy_ right now, with her best friend- who she hadn't seen in three weeks- lying on his lumpy bed, completely absorbed in _Lost Languages of Ancient Cultures_. When she prodded him out of his hypnotized state to ask him if he was hungry, and he responded with, "Just let me finish this chapter, Hime", she snapped.

_"Syaoran Li_," she said loudly, her hands placed on her hips, "Get up of that stupid, useless piece of garbage that you call a bed, put that_ damn book down_-"

The young archeologist flinched at her curse.

_"- _and I swear, if you call me 'hime' _one_ more time today I will personally burn this place and all of your oh-so-important books to ashes, _do you understand_?"

Syaoran's brown eyes were wide, but he obeyed and placed the book on his nightstand, his terrified face never leaving hers. "Right, of course, Hime, I was being ru-"

The frustrated growl Sakura let out was enough to make Syaoran duck for cover.

"I-I'm sorry! I'm sorry, Sakura, _Sakura, Sakurasakurasakurasakura._"

The princess was still mad, but she softened at the tone of his voice. Maybe she shouldn't have yelled at him. In fact, maybe she was being selfish, demanding his attention while he was trying to enjoy one of the rare days he had off. After all Syaoran had done for her, she at least owed him the pleasure of some peace and quiet while he had the chance.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly. "For yelling at you. You can finish up your reading if you want."

Syaoran's eyes widened even more, which seemed impossible. "Sakura-him- _Sakura_. What's the matter?"

And there it was again. He was back to being concerned only for her, just as he always was. She wanted to cry and apologize for being such a burden to him, but that would only make him fuss about her more.

"Syao," she said (she'd gotten into the habit of calling him by his old nickname since she'd found out the truth behind their relationship), "I'm sorry. You've done so much for me- you_ do _so much for me- and I must seem so ungrateful. I just... Thank you. I don't think I say it enough. Thank you for finding my memories, and for sacraficing so much to save me. I know there's no way for me to ever make it up to you, but... thank you."

By the time she finished, there were tears starting to form in her eyes- oh, God, no. She would not cry. There was no reason for her to cry. She would _not cry in front of Syaoran._

Even as she told herself that there was no valid reason for her to get emotional right now, she could feel hot tears slipping out of the corners of her eyes. She turned away, taking to long strides to Syaoran's old wood-burning stove and pulled down a bushel of lettuce from the shelf just above it and shedding some of the green leaves into a pot. She had to do something to distract herself.

"I'm just going to make some lunch, okay, Syao?" she fought to keep her voice from wavering. "Go back to yo-"

A pair of warm hands on her shoulders turned her around gently. Sakura kept her face aimed at the ground, but Syaoran cupped his hand under her chin and pushed it up to look her in the eyes.

"I didn't do any of those things because you asked me to, Sakura," his voice was soft, like he was afraid she might break if he spoke too loudly. "I did them because I needed you to live. I couldn't live in a world without you, Princess."

Sakura didn't correct him this time.

"And besides, it wasn't all bad, right?" he grinnned. Things have turned out pretty well for us, haven't they?"

She nodded. "They have," she murmered quietly, not trusting herself to say anything else.

"Sakura," the grin was gone now, and his face was serious. Syaoran's hand shifted from Sakura's shoulder to the back of her neck. "I love you."

Sakura knew he was planning to kiss her, but she made it to him first. She pulled on the collar of his green cloak, bringing his face down to hers. He responded slowly, gently, as if he was afraid he might hurt her. Neither of them had any experience with kissing, and Sakura could feel his hand shaking as it stroked the back of her neck. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she wondered if he could feel her heart pounding through her clothes.

After only a few seconds, Syaoran drew back a few inches. He was close enough that Sakura could feel his warm breath fanning across her face, but that was much, much too far for her taste.

"Is... this okay?" he whispered.

Sakura wanted to tell him of course it was okay, it was more than okay, it was great and perfect and she loved him, but her mouth wouldn't cooperate, so she just nodded and pulled him closer and brought their lips together again.

This time, the archeologist had gained some confidence and wrapped one arm around her waist, the other slipping back behind her head. Sakura's hands ran through his soft brown hair, leaving little rows of messy tufts as she went along. The tips of her toes tingled, and her stomach flopped around like a fish out of water. She hoped Syaoran couldn't tell how nervous she was right now.

When they finally broke apart for air, Syaoran planted feather-light kisses on her head and her cheeks and her neck. She gasped as he hit a sensitive spot just below her ear. She thought that, if he didn't get away from her soon, she might just melt right there in the middle of his little hut.

"I love you, Hime," Syaoran murmered into her neck.

"I love you, too," she tried to keep her voice even. "And- SYAORAN."  
"S-sorry!"

It would be eight months before Sakura finally convinced Syaoran to buy a new bed, and he would never get over his love affair with words, but in the end, he made up for it every day with four words that never failed to make her heart flutter.

"_I love you, Sakura."_


End file.
